Baby Bombshell
by findingmymuse
Summary: Trapped in Thirteen, Katniss has to find a way to tell all the people she cares about that she's having a baby...including Peeta.
1. Chapter 1

"What do you mean the boy doesn't know?" Haymitch huffed. "Blabbed the whole thing to the Capitol, remember?"

"H-we-he didn't think it was real." I throw my hands up. It had been a long ten minutes. And unlike Haymitch, I couldn't have a drink to calm my nerves. Though, to be honest, I had only ever had a glass of his liquor one time-and regretted it, mostly, in the morning.

"It was just one time," my voice is almost a whisper. "On the train. After Peeta volunteered for you."

"And it's real now?" Haymitch took a sip from his hidden flask, one that Coin had already confiscated twice, when he saw my unwavering expression. "Well, I'll be damned. Looks like the star-crossed lovers had it in them after all."

I shoot daggers with my eyes, my fingers curling the empty air in search of my bow. "This isn't funny, old man. Don't you see? This b-this thing is going to be just another pawn in their games. Snow with his war, the rebels with their cause, Coin with her Mockingjay symbol. I can't do it. I can't protect it on my own."

Haymitch nods. He and I both know that Peeta was the strong one, the brave one, the one who actually wanted children. "Who knows about this?"

"No one." I reply. "My mother brewed me up something to make sure, said she didn't trust Thirteen's leftover Capitol technology. So she knows. But I haven't even told Prim yet."

"Best to keep it that way for a little while longer. I'll deal with Coin when the time comes." Haymitch looked down at his flask when he spoke again. "And, your mother, could she brew something else up for you? I know girls in the Seam ask for this kind of thing all the time when they can't afford another mouth to feed."

The thought never occurred to me. I knew my mother could create such a tonic. It was horrible smelling and went down worse than molasses and seemed to come a little too late for most of the malnourished women who were farther along than they suspected. But I knew it would work for me. I was barely in my second month.

"I-I couldn't kill something of Peeta's." I say finally. Because no matter how much I don't want to bring children into the world, I could never take that away from Peeta. He was just so _good_. He deserved one thing in his life that would be able to love him properly.

"Well then. We'd better make sure to get Lover Boy back before that little one pops because you, sweetheart, look scared shitless."

* * *

Even though I try to keep it a secret from Prim, my little sister knows when I'm keeping something from her. While she's dressing for bed that night after my talk with Haymitch, she tells me about her day and gives me a funny look.

"Hey, Katniss, Mom let me help her today in the hospital and that nurse with the red hair that you call Ginger, but actually her name is Shelley, said that I had a knack for healing. Well, actually, she thought that I showed promise at re-bandaging the Coakley twins' knee scrapes, but I think that if we stay in Thirteen long enough, I could apply to be a nurse here or even a doctor."

"I think you will make a fine doctor one day, little duck." I reply, wrapping my arms around my little sister as she curls into bed with me. Her body is warm and familiar, even though she no longer smells like sunshine and coal.

"And I think you will make a fine mother one day, Katniss." Prim says, turning her body to face mine so our noses almost touch.

"I-wh-how do you know?" I whisper, astonished that my thirteen year old sister has figured it out.

"You're glowing!" Prim giggles. When I glance down at the normal olive coloring of my arm, she giggles even harder. "Not really, it's just something people say. Well, it's what we say to the merchant women who get pregnant," her voice softens sadly, "those in the Seam don't like to be reminded."

"Is it really that obvious?" I ask, terrified that the whole of District Thirteen and the hundred or so residents of District Twelve know that I'm pregnant.

"You're my sister, Katniss. Of course I would notice." Prim crinkles her nose, the only physical trait she seemed to have inherited from our father. "Are you not telling people? As far as I know, you're the first pregnant woman in District Thirteen since the measles outbreak the doctors keep talking about. My little niece or nephew is a miracle!"

"Shh, not so loud," I panic and cover her mouth with my left hand. She licks my palm playfully and I release my hold. "I'm sorry, but until I have to, I don't want anyone to know. People here already look at me like I'm a freak or, worse, their savior."

"Your secret is safe with me," Prim says and wiggles her tiny pinky finger in my eye line. I offer her my own and smile at the "Sister Swear."

She lays her head back on her half of the pillow, her eyes closed but a smile on her lips. "I'm gonna be the best aunt that kid has ever seen, just watch."

* * *

I do Coin's promos with Finnick for two months before it becomes apparent that I no longer fit into the beautiful Mockingjay costume that Cinna made for me. Probably his last traitorous act. And, when I realize this, I start openly weeping.

"Hey, shh, Katniss, it's okay," Finnick's calm green eyes keep me focused. "You don't have to shoot today."

"Bu-" Finnick stops all opposition from our camera crew with a murderous glare, one I had only seen him use in the Arena. They scurry away with their cameras and boom mics, but the tears don't stop.

"It's-just*hiccup*that-Cinna-made*hiccup*me-this-and-I-I-want-to-wear-it*hiccup*but-I'm-too-faaaat."

"Maybe I should get Annie, or your mom, or Prim." Finnick offers. "I'm not so good at this girl stuff. Because I could hardly call Katniss Everdeen fat." He jokes, poking me lightly in the stomach.

"Don't hurt it!" The words shoot out of my mouth before I have a chance to think about them.

"I'm not going to tear Cinna's cloth-" The Capitol favorite from Four teeters off. "Katniss, what can't I hurt?"

I let out a whimper when I think about someone hurting Peeta's baby and instinctively protect my stomach with both of my hands.

"You can't be more than, what, three or four months pregnant?" Finnick guesses. "Annie will be so thrilled to have someone going through the same thing. Wait, does Peet know?"

"Annie's pregnant, too?" I ask in a small voice. It seems this thing growing inside of me was also affecting my volume as well as my hormones.

"We weren't telling anyone until after we got Johanna and Peeta back from the Capitol, but, yes. Annie's pregnant." Finnick's grin split his entire face as he gushed about his future baby.

I tried to imagine a different smile at knowing he was going to be a proud papa, but Peeta had been gone so long that I was having trouble coming up with it. If they couldn't get him back, if, somehow I was left to raise this thing on my own...I tried not to think about that. Peeta was coming back. He had to.

* * *

"Catnip."

I whirl around from where Finnick and I are discussing Annie's own mild mood swings in comparison to my own when I hear Gale.

That one word is both an accusation and an astonishment.

"Gale, wait." He doesn't, though. He takes off into the woods where he came from, the two birds he shot for the district left abandoned where he dropped them.

I chase after him, restricted by the too-tight-suit and my own sluggishness. Though I'm not showing more than a small bump, I'm emotionally drained and it takes a toll on me. "Don't make me chase after you, idiot."

He sneaks up behind me, my heavy breathing blocking out the sound of his nearly-silent hunter's steps, and I gasp when I feel his breath on my neck. "Knocked up by Bread Boy, huh? I thought you said you didn't ever want children."

"I didn't-I don't." I face him, his expression hard. "But, here it is."

"Your mom could have made you a tonic, Katniss. Why do you never think until it's too late?"

Something primal comes out of my throat, almost like a growl. "I'm keeping it."

"Because it's his?" Gale raises a knowing eyebrow. "You don't owe him anything. I watched your latest promo, about the bread, and-"

"This isn't about _owing_ anything."

Gale pauses for a few seconds and clears his throat. "If it had been different-"

"But it's not."

"I'm just saying, if it had been my baby and I was the one trapped in the Capitol, would you have kept it?"

I sigh. "That's not fair, Gale."

"I think you just answered my question."

"Wait-"

"No, I'm done waiting for you." Gale closed his eyes. "I've waited for years for you to take notice of me, Catnip, and the second you even seem to register me, there's Mellark. Even in the Capitol, he's winning right now."


	2. Chapter Two

By the time they rescue Johanna and Peeta from the Capital, the entirety of District 13 knows I'm close to six months pregnant. I tried to hide it as long as possible, but this baby was determined to be noticed.

I had to borrow clothes from Delly Cartwright, a plump merchant girl that knew Peeta back in 12. Her face lit up when I awkwardly started crying in the bathroom one day, not long after my Mockingjay-dress breakdown, about the hot water. It was dumb and I thought I was alone with my thoughts, so I really let loose over the fact that even a secret and completely underground district like 13 could have running water. In 12, if we wanted hot water, we had to heat up buckets of water and dump them into the tub. I worried about returning to The Seam and trying to care for a baby there in all its squaler. Or worse, not returning there. My future was in such flux. Would Peeta survive? Would the war continue indefinitely? Would I be able to raise a child that I swore I'd never have by myself?

"Katniss, what's wrong?" A blonde girl I knew from school, but had never actually spoken to, asked.

Shit.

"Sorry, it's nothing." I lied. "I'm fine."

"Peeta would kill me if he knew I'd left you alone crying in a bayhtoom."

"You know Peeta?" I had asked dumbly. Of course she did. She was merchant like him.

"Peet and I go way back. Kindergarten playdates set up by our parents, at first. But he was sweet enough to be my friend through school, too. Even though he was on the wrestling team and I was hardly a cheerleader." Delly smiled, her dimples appearing. "He was like a brother to me. I'm just sorry we never got to meet. Before the Games, he was so embarrassed that I'd spill the beans to you. I knew all about the great Katniss Everdeen. I think because I was a girl, he felt comfortable talking about you? Or maybe it was just because his brothers didn't understand his love for a Seam girl..." Delly paused. "Sorry, you know what I mean. Peeta didn't care about that, though. He loves you."

"Thank you." I managed.

Her fair eyebrows raised. "For what?"

"For not saying 'loved.' Everyone talks in past tense about Peeta." I scowled. "Like he's already dead."

Delly smiled sadly and I decided there that I liked the talkative shoemaker's daughter. It wasn't the same as having Peeta back, but being friends with her was a connection to his old life in a way I hadn't felt since arriving in 13.

And, if I was being honest, I needed all the friends I could get.

After Gale freaked out on me, he's kept his distance. That was fine. I was keeping my distance from him, too.

I love Peeta. There's no use denying it now. I'm heavily pregnant with his child, one I could have easily "taken care of," as Gale reminds me with every dirty look at my swollen stomach when he thinks I'm not looking. I can't look at Gale without being reminded that he wanted me to terminate, an ancient term from the Dark Days when abortions were performed by doctors.

"Can I tell you a secret, Delly?" I asked and she nodded adamantly. "Peeta has to come home." I raised my shirt the tiniest bit to reveal my hardening baby bump.

She squeaked. She literally squeaked! "Oh my goodness, Katniss. I can't believe it was real!" Her dimples were back. "At the viewing, I wasn't sure. I thought maybe it was a stunt for the Capital or to stop the Games or something. That's the kind of lie I know Peeta would try if it meant getting you out of there alive..."

"Delly, Delly, slow down." I shushed her. But at least, my tears had stopped. "It wasn't real."

That stopped her short. I could see the gears churning in her mind. Her bottom lip dropped. "You guys didn't know?"

"He came up with the idea after we had," I mumbled, "um, the night before. But we didn't think it had actually, uh, that it was real."

"He's going to be so excited, Katniss!" Delly smiled again and this time it was contagious.

"Thanks, I hope so." I said. "But until he's back or I'm ready, could you not say anything to anyone?"

"Oh, sure thing." Delly's smile faultered. "But if you're trying to hide it, you might need different clothes soon."

Two weeks later, I took her up on her offer.

Annie, though as pregnant as I was, stayed petite. Her crazy ramblings about "babies in the water" and "spoons full of seaweed" and hormonal mood swings were ignored by everyone. I, however, was less conspicuous. As the Mockingjay, I rarely got a moment of rest. Haymitch and Finnick tried to help with Coin, but hiding a belly became harder and refusing to do propos became more irritating to our self-appointed leader.

But I refused to let her air any footage of me once the cat was out of the bag.

"This baby could give hope to the entire nation!" Coin argued

"Over my dead body." I growled protectively.

And that was that.

The day Peeta was rescued, I felt our baby kick for the first time.

I woke up in a panic, sweat dripping down my nightgown. Another nightmare about mutts getting to Peeta before I could save him. This time, I had felt a stirring in my stomach. Not an ache, but something worse.

Tap, tap. My hand flew to my stomach, trying to still the movement.

Prim had long abandoned sleeping in bed with me. Between the nightmares and my ever growing stomach, it was easier for her to get a peaceful night's sleep sleeping with our mother. I called down the hall for her, hoping she wasn't on duty.

"What's wrong, Katniss?" Prim asked.

"Something's wrong with the baby." I cried. I grabbed my sister's hand and placed it on the spot where I felt the ache.

Instead of concern, Prim's face reflected joy. "Nothing's wrong with the baby. She's kicking."

Relief flooded me and I scowled at my sister. "It could be a boy, you know."

"No-pe." Prim grinned. "That's my little neice in there, I just know it."

"As long as she's perfect like you, little duck."

Suddenly, a round of applause broke out down the hallway in the common area, followed by a clash.

"Leave the kid alone!" Haymitch's voice. "Alma, I told you he wasn't ready for this."

He could only mean one person.

"Peeta." I whispered, and the baby kicked in agreement.

My footsteps echoed off the walls, Prim's voice shouting at me to slow down from behind me, but I didn't hear any of it. It was like back in the Arena for the first Games. I had to find Peeta.

He was sitting alone in a room, his hands covering his eyes, mumbling something over and over again.

"Peeta?" I didn't want to startle him. It looked like he was having a nightmare, though he seemed awake.

His eyes met mine, then fell to my stomach and an anguished look crossed his face. "Not real. Not real."

I took a step forward and he recoiled. "Get away from me, mutt!"

"Peeta, it's me. It's Katniss."

"Katniss." He says my name like a hiss and his eyes go dark. I've seen that look before and have the good sense to back out of the room as he lunges for me. Well, me and the baby. _His_ baby.

Prim has caught up with me, as well as Haymitch. Together, they help keep Peeta inside the room. He screams my name, "mutt," and "not real" until his voice goes hoarse. But I can't look away, can't leave him. I find out from Haymitch that Peeta has been trackerjacked by the Capitol in order to turn him against me.

Delly visits him daily, talking about old times, and he's calm and happy. I stick my head near the doorway and he freaks out.

I'm at the end of my third trimester when I'm finally allowed to visit Peeta. My mother has been monitoring his progress with his medications and his reactions about certain triggers. Specifically me. _I'm_ Peeta's biggest trigger.

President Coin insists that my mother, Haymitch, Gale, and two other District 13 guards are present for this interaction. Can't have anything happen to her Mockingjay.

"Peeta?" I step slowly into the room, my bodyguards already positioned around the room to stop Peeta should he try to make a grab for me. For extra precaution, they handcuffed him to the hospital bed. I ignore them and step closer, earning myself a sigh from Gale.

"Katniss?" Peeta frowns. "Everything is fuzzy."

"Shh it's okay, Peeta." I'm at the edge of the bed now.

"You're having my baby, real or not real?"

"Real."


End file.
